Darius Acuff Jr. exploded for 37 points Friday night, carrying No. 17 Arkansas to an 82-79 victory over Oklahoma in a hard-fought Southeastern Conference Tournament quarterfinal in Nashville, Tennessee. The win secured the Razorbacks a spot in the tournament semifinals, marking their third consecutive win.

Razorbacks Survive Tight Contest

The No. 3-seeded Razorbacks (24-8) battled through a gritty matchup that saw 16 lead changes and 11 ties, never allowing either team to pull away significantly. Acuff Jr., who leads the SEC in scoring and earned both Player and Freshman of the Year honors, was instrumental from the start, pouring in 21 points in the first half alone. His scoring kept Arkansas close, trailing just 39-37 at halftime.

Much of the second half remained a tight affair, with neither squad managing more than a four-point advantage. The game's final tie came at 67-all with 5:38 remaining after a layup from Oklahoma's Dayton Forsythe. But Arkansas responded quickly. Malique Ewin's dunk just 21 seconds later put the Razorbacks ahead for good, igniting a crucial run.

Arkansas then scored nine of the next 11 points, creating some breathing room. Acuff Jr. delivered a decisive three-pointer with 2:27 left on the clock, extending Arkansas's lead to its largest of the night at 76-69. Trevon Brazile also chipped in 12 points for the Razorbacks. Meleek Thomas, who entered the game averaging 15.4 points, struggled from the field, hitting just 2 of 10 shots to finish with eight points.

Path to the Semifinals

Arkansas made it to their 17th SEC Tournament semifinal. Next up: Ole Miss on Saturday. Ole Miss pulled off a 80-79 upset over Alabama earlier Friday, so now they'll face Arkansas at Bridgestone Arena. This year's SEC tournament is building to a thrilling "crunch time" ahead of Selection Sunday and the broader March Madness picture.

The game showed how much Arkansas depends on Acuff Jr. to win close contests. Three straight wins heading into the semis gives them real momentum. A tournament run would help their NCAA Tournament seeding.

Oklahoma's NCAA Hopes Dim

Oklahoma's six-game win streak is over, and their NCAA Tournament hopes just got a lot shakier. After losing nine straight in conference play, Oklahoma needed this win badly. Now Oklahoma waits to see if going 8-2 in their last 10 before this loss gets them into the tournament for the 35th time.

Playing their third game in three nights, Oklahoma still fought hard. Nijel Pack led the Sooners with 19 points. Derrion Reid and Tae Davis each contributed 17 points, while Mohamed Wague added 13. Pack's last-second three-pointer rimmed out, ending it.

Arkansas got the ball back with 0.6 seconds left and ran out the clock.